So I've seen varying takes on this. What exactly is happening? Does the executive branch have the power to extend it? Is the Supreme Court blocking it? Does the CDC?
Can someone give me a breakdown pleaaaase?!
There are measures the Executive can take and there are measures the legislature can take. The fact that all of them are standing around pointing fingers demonstrates they don't intend to do a damned thing about it.
Judge kauvagna, however you spell it). Says he will switch his vote if they extend it. So that's a no from the SC.
So biden is just pulling a parliamentairing bs excuse why they won't even try. The reality is if it's extended it will at the very least by a few weeks as it's taken up by the courts. Also his cabinet is filled with black rock and they want all those small landlords property.
The house. Well the house could of done something. Instead Pelosi held a unanimous consent vote so she could blame the republicans for it not passing and to just get on with her vacay. And she's using the old but the senate excuse.
Now they are pointing fingers at each other looking about as brain dead as my elderly landlord.
Looks like the white house is also blaming the press and accusing them of being hyperbolic
Basically Biden's administration wants the moratorium to end because they think it will be good for the economy and housing market long-term, but they can't say that outright so they are just passing the blame.
The short version: the Supreme Court would probably block it, but Democrats didn't bother trying to extend it regardless.
The long version:
The eviction moratorium was put in place by the CDC and was scheduled to end on July 31. The Supreme Court said in late June that the CDC should not have been allowed to issue it in the first place, but said that it can stay in place until July 31 because that's so soon and there's still tons of rental assitance money that hasn't been distributed yet.
On July 29, Biden said "this is Congress' problem to fix." Nancy Pelosi was like "what the fuck this is the first time I ever heard about this issue how do you expect me to pass this bill in two days." She called a bullshit unanimous consent vote (meaning any 1 objector could block it) and some random Republican did (as expected). Then Nancy said "the mean old GOP blocked the eviction bill" when it's painfully obvious she didn't have the votes to pass it regardless (and even if she did it would get filibustered in the Senate). Biden thought about extending the moratorium unilaterally but decided against it because he assumed he'd lose at the Supreme Court and that the Supreme Court might block even more covid orders in addition to the eviction one. The CDC has said they won't do it because they think they'll lose in court. Biden asked the CDC to extend the moratorium on August 2nd, but shrug.
So now we have Biden and Pelosi finger-pointing over whose fault it is, half of Congress on vacation now anyway, and a tidal wave of evictions. They didn't even try to extend the moratorium and it's painfully obvious neither Biden nor Congressional Dems really support it.
Note that in June, the Supreme Court mentioned that the rental assistance money was one reason why there shouldn't be an eviction moratorium. A month later, in early August (today), the rental assistance money still hasn't gone out. There are some lawyers who think that would persuade the Supreme Court, but I have no fucking idea because I can't read Brett Kavanaugh's mind and neither can they.
So how big of a backlog of people are there who are about to get evicted and how soon does that happen? Are we looking at another Occupy?
I keep hearing the figure being an estimated 6 million or so, but idk if it's people or households. It's basically going to be as soon as landlords feel like it, really.
As to whether we're looking at another occupy: Haha no, this is hellworld. Nothing ever happens unless it's objectively awful.
Yeah I hate to say it but a wave of homeless people isn't going to result in large scale organized protest, it's going to result in large scale organized police action.
The Census Bureau said 7.4 million households were behind on rent at the end of July
Biden could probably do an executive order to keep it up for a couple more weeks before the courts overturn it. Congress has control of the purse and they could try paying everyone's rent for a bit, but that would never pass and is also short term.
The US government has strong property laws built into the Constitution and no President or body of congress can indefinitely stop rent collection or evictions even if they wanted too. The government literally would collapse before something like an eviction moratorium became permanent.
Baoist's reply is very good.
I'll just add one thing...
Does the CDC?
No. Biden and Pelosi knew that but asked the CDC to it anyway to shift blame. The Biden and the DC dems did an own goal in the dumbest way possible.
And Biden's chutzpah is quite something. He promised to not to mix politics and science.
Ending the eviction moratorium is in the bougie class' - especially the wee bougies class' - short term best interests because it will force people back to work and end (or at least lessen) the labor shortage without a $15 federal minimun wage having to be installed. This is why you're seeing the Dems make a big show of saying how bad it is that the moratorium is ending, but not actually doing anything to stop the moratorium from ending.
Long term, it could be against bougies' best interests if enough people are dispossesed fast enough. Historically, plague-ridden desparate masses with nothing to lose have had a lot of revolutionary potential. But if the eviction process takes long enough, some of that potential can be dulled by states' own moratoriums, rent reimbursement to landlords, etc.
The pandemic has shifted the landscape though. And everyone's in a more precarious position than in '08. But you're right, even that may not be enough to radicalize people.
The CDC can make recommendations, the Legistlative branch could remain in session until something is worked out (but they bailed as soon as they could for a 7 week va-kay), not sure if the Executive could do some "presidential signing statement" thing to extend it, at the moment I do not believe there is anything at the Federal level that the Supremes are expecting to make a decision on.
Though there might be state level Supremes that could do something, maybe. :shrug-outta-hecks:
